Garment hanger



[- LEUMl GARMENT HANGER Jan. 23, 1951 Filed July 3, 1948 INVENTOR.

lPatenteci Jan. 23,1951

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to garment hangers, and particularly to the type intended for the reception of a coat or similar garment.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a han er of this character in which the supporting bar of the hanger is regulatable as to its effective length to enable the hanger to properly fit across and support the shoulder portion of the garment placed on it.

The conventional garment hanger, having a supporting bar of a given length, very often fails to properly support a garment placed upon it since in some instances the ends of the hanger bar fail to extend to the junctions of the shoulders and sleeves of the garment. A drooping effect of the sleeves ensues and when a garment is left on a hanger of this character for an appreciable time, the garment is likely to assume an undesired and misshapen appearance. In cases where the hanger bar is too long for a garment placed upon it, the ends of the bar are likely to project into the sleeves of the garment and distort these portions of the garment.

It is, therefore, desirable that the supporting bar of the hanger be adjustable to the shape and width of the shoulders of the garment to enable the hanger to fit any garment placed upon it, and the present invention contemplates such adjustable means.

Another object of the invention is to provide, in a garment hanger of this character, means by which'trousers or a skirt can be supported in addition to a coat, such trouser or skirt-support also including means by which it serves as a stop for limiting the adjusting movement of the hanger bar at least in one direction.

These and other objects are attained by the invention, a more particular description of which will hereinafter appear and be set forth in th claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein an illustrative embodiment of the invention is disclosed:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation, with parts broken away, and other parts shown in section, of one end portion of the supporting bar of a garment hanger constructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a view looking at the underside of the structure shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation, with parts in section of one end of the supporting bar of the hanger of a modified construction;

Fig. 4 is a sectional View taken on the line 44 of Fig. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 5 is a view looking at the under side of the structure of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a face view of the slidably mounted plate employed for supporting a skirt or trousers, and

Fig. 7 is a face view of the fixed apertured plate.

With reference to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, l indicates one of the end portions of the supporting bar of a garment hanger, the same constituting an integral extension of a central hub II from which the suspension hook I2 arises in the known manner. The body of the hanger may be composed of wood, plastic, metal or other suitable material. Secured to the under face of the end portion I0 is an elongated plate [3, said plate being fastened in position adjacent to its opposite ends by the screws I4 and or other equivalent fastening means. Provided in the plate I3 is a plurality of equally-spaced apertures or holes l6 constituting part of a locking means for the adjustable end portion of the hanger to be described.

At one end, the plate I3 is provided with two spaced lugs I! which receive a pintle i8 comprisin a pivot for a finger l9. Said finger l9 constitutes a support for a skirt, trousers or similar garment, a like finger being provided at the opposite end of the hanger bar, so that the garment will be supported between the two similar fingers.

A torsional spring surrounds the pintle l8 and has one end 2! bearing against the plate l3 and its other end 22 bearing against the finger l9, this arrangement being such that the spring tends to normally elevate the finger l9 to its raised position or that shown in dotted lines at the left in Fig. 1. At its end, the plate I3 is formed with a shoulder 23 forming an abutment or stop to limit the upward swing of the finger I9 and maintain it in its raised position.

Adjustably mounted on the bar portion in is a sleevelike sliding shoulder support 24, which is provided at one end with the rounded ovate hollow portion 25 which fits over and covers the end of the hanger bar Ill and also finger l9 which, when in raised position, is thus normally hidden from view. Said shoulder support fits over the top and two sides of the bar portion In and is telescopically slidable over the hanger bar I 0. The shoulder support 24 has the two side walls 26 and 21 and at one end each of these walls has a downwardly extending lug portion 28 and between the two lugs 28 is secured a cross bar or member 29 which is apertured to receive a ball 30 constituting a detent and spring-pressed by the spring 3| to urge it into engagement with any selected one of the apertures I6 accordin to the position of the adjustable shoulder support 24.

From the foregoing, the operation of the described structure will be readily comprehended. The adjustable shoulder support is readily slid longitudinally of and telescopically to the hanger bar I and the ball 30, constituting a detent, will click into engagement with any selected one of the apertures 16 and thus hold the adjustable shoulder support in any position in which it is placed, thereby accommodating the hanger bar to the shoulder proportions of the particular garment placed upon it. The weight of the garment on the hanger, and particularly exerted on the rounded ovate end portion thereof, will tend to hold the detent in engagement with the selected aperture It so that inadvertent shifting or sliding movement of the shoulder supports 24 will be prevented while a garment is borne by the hanger.

When it is desired to suspend a skirt, trousers or other garment on the fingers l9, these fingers are swung downwardly and inserted in the garment, and the tendency of these fingers to swing upwardly under the exertion of the springs 29 will cause the fingers to engage and hold theskirt; trousers or the like, indicated by letter S in Figs. 1 and 3.

To limit the sliding movement of the, adjustable shoulder support 24 in aninward direction or toward the right as viewed in Fig. 1, the finger l 9 when raised, fits within the ovate end 25 and will contact with or abut against the end wall por ion of this part of the shoulder support 24. The outward sliding movement of the shoulder support is limited by contact of the cross bar 29 with the lugs IT. This structure has been described in re,- lation to one end of the hanger and it will be understood that the opposite end of the hanger is similarly constructed.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 3 and 5, an elongated apertured plate 30 is attached by the screws 3! to the under faceof the hanger bar It. Apertures 32 are provided in suitably spaced relation in the plate 39, The slidable shoulder support 33, is generally sim lar in shape to that shown at 24 in Fig. 1, but is provided at the bottom with the inturned flanges 34 embracing the hanger bar I0, and a slidable aper- I tured plate 35.1ocated between the plate 30 and the inturned flanges Secured across the inturned flanges 34 is the end of a T- shape leaf spring 35 adapted to resiliently with any selected one of the apertures 32 in plate 38 and also with any one of the apertures 37 provided in the slidable plate 35. At one end, said plate 35 is downwardly bent to provide a finger 38 adapted to engage within a skirt, trousers or other garment. With this structure, the sleeve-like shoulder support 33 is slidably moved to any desired position to make the supporting bar of the required effective length to fit a garment and it will be retained in that seected position by the engagement of the spring 36 with any one of the apertures 32. The slidable p'ate 35 is also adjustable longitudinally of the bar It and when any one or" its apertures 31 is aligned with one of the apertures 32, the spring will engage the registered apertures and'holdthe' parts in adjusted position.

The structures described are such that the effective length of the hanger bar is instan lycontrolled by sliding of the shoulder supports iii- Wardly or outwardly as required and the same will hold their set positions to properly support the coat. At the same time, the finger-like skirt or trouser supports can also be adjusted and very conveniently used for supporting a skirt or trousers whenever desired.

Having described several embodiments of the invention, it is obvious that the same is not to be restricted thereto but is broad enough to cover all structures coming within the scope of the annexed claims.

What I claim is:

1. A garment hanger comprising, a hanger bar, a sleeve-like shoulder support telescopically fitted over the end of the bar and slidable longitudinally along the bar, said shoulder support having' a rounded free end fitting over and covering the end of the bar, the under side of the bar being provided with spaced apart apertures, a spring-pressed ball detent carried by the shoulder support for engagement with one of the apertures, a pivoted garment-supporting finger'at one end of the bar, and spring means for normally elevating said finger to enable the same to operate as a stop to limit the sliding movement of the shoulder support in one direction.

2; A garment hanger comprising, a hanger bar, a plate secured to the under face of the same, said plate being provided with a plurality of spaced apertures, a sleeve-like hollow shoulder support slidably mounted on the bar and having a-rounded end enclosing the end of the bar, a cross-piece extending transversely of the plate and carried by the shou. der support below the plate, a springpressed ball carried by the cross-piece and constituting a detent for engagement with any one of the apertures in the plate, a finger pivoted at one end of the plate, a spring for normally urging said finger on its pivot to a position substantially in alignment with said bar and within the hollow shoulder support whereby said finger serves as an abutment to limit the sliding movement of the shoulder support in one direction, and means for limiting the sliding movement of the shoulder support in the opposite direction.

3. A garment hanger comprising a hanger bar,

a shoulder support telescopically fitted over the end of said bar and. longitudinally slidable on said bar, said bar being provided at its underface with spaced apertures, a cross-member extending at the underface of said hanger bar and fixed to said shoulder support, and a spring-supported ball detent carried by sa d cross-member of said shoulder support and resiliently and frictionally engageable with one of said apertures to thereby hold said shoulder support in a selected position of adjustment on said bar.

IGO LEUMI.

tEFER'ENCES' CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,935,234 White Nov. 14, 1933 2,409,708 Rothweiler Oct. 22, 1946 2,458,859 Kestell Jan. 11, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 644,731 France June 18, 1928 

